Bewitched

Bewitched follows the lives of Darrin and Samantha Stephens, an average couple in every way but one: Samantha is a witch.

Darrin goes out to work at advertising agency McMann and Tate whilst Samantha stays at home to keep house in a nice middle-class neighborhood (conflicting information is given on the location, but it seems to be either Patterson, New York or Westport, Connecticut). But whether at work or home, Samantha’s secret must be concealed from the mortal world.

Samantha Stephens (Elizabeth Montgomery) – Samantha is a witch. No-one knows her real age: though she appears very young, there are several hints throughout the series that she’s actually several hundred years old. Samantha breaks the news of her unusual powers to Darrin (Dick York and Dick Sargent) on their honeymoon. He’s clear how things are going to be: Samantha must stop using her powers and become a normal, suburban housewife. She tries to please Darrin but sometimes witchcraft is just, well, easier. Her family, particularly her mother Endora (Agnes Moorhead) strongly disapproves of the magic-mortal marriage, but Samantha doesn’t care: Darrin is the man for her.

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Darrin Stephens (Dick York and Dick Sargent) – Darrin is your average mortal man. He goes to work every day at the McMann and Tate advertising agency and comes home to his beautiful, loving wife, Samantha. But being married to a witch when her family disapproves isn’t always easy: Darrin is often the victim of some sort of spell, usually intended to get him to leave his wife. It takes more than magic, though, to stand in the way of true love and despite the best efforts of his in-laws, Darrin and Samantha are very happy together.

Endora (Agnes Moorehead) – Samantha’s mother Endora despises mortals in general and Darrin in particular. She manages to call him by his name only eight times during the entire series, instead referring to him as “Durwood”, “Dum-Dum” or even “What’s his name”. Like any witch, Endora never reveals her last name – not that it matters; as she tells Darrin, he wouldn’t be able to pronounce it if she did. But beneath her antagonistic exterior, Endora nurses a soft spot for Darrin. Although she casts countless spells upon him, she never tries to do him any real harm and when the “High Priestess Hephzibah” (Jane Connell) expresses surprise that he has withstood so many years of provocation Endora shrugs and says, “He loves my daughter”.

Larry and Louise Tate (David White, Irene Vernon and Kasey Rogers) – Larry is Darrin’s boss at McMann and Tate. Constantly changing his opinions to fit in with his clients, Larry is obsessed with profit, but every now and then he shows his moral side. His wife Louise becomes Samantha’s best friend in the mortal world.

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Gladys and Abner Kravitz (Alice Pearce and Sandra Gould, George Tobias) – Gladys is married to Abner and they live across the street from the Stephens. Gladys’s extreme nosiness makes her a regular witness to spells and witchcraft, but luckily for Samantha and Darrin whenever she tries to tell her husband what she’s seen he thinks she’s losing her marbles.

Maurice (Maurice Evans) – Maurice is Samantha’s father and a suave actor who likes to mark his entrances and exits with Shakespearean verse. He and Endora have what he calls “an informal marriage” where they do not live together or, for that matter, seem to like each other very much. Like Endora, he has a host of nicknames for Darrin.

Phyllis and Frank Stephens (Mabel Albertson, Robert F. Simon and Roy Roberts) – Phyllis and Frank are Darrin’s parents. Phyllis is very conventional, while her husband is more laid back. They don’t visit too often, but Phyllis is known to drop by now and then as a “surprise”. They never find out that Samantha is a witch, although on more than one occasion Phyllis witnesses a spell that leaves her complaining of a headache.

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Serena (also played by Elizabeth Montgomery) – Serena is the look-alike cousin of Samantha but the exact opposite of her in every other way. She has short black hair, wears mini-skirts and (most of the time) has a beauty mark on her cheek. Unlike the rest of the family, she usually supports Darrin and Samantha, though she considers them somewhat square. More progressive than most witches, she has even been known to date a mortal herself now and then.

Uncle Arthur (Paul Lynde) – Samantha’s Uncle Arthur is the prankster brother of Endora. Although Darrin is often the subject of his practical jokes, he doesn’t seem to dislike him nearly as much as his sister does.

Aunt Clara (Marion Lorne) – Aunt Clara is the one member of Samantha’s family that Darrin is somewhat willing to tolerate. Absent-minded and well-intentioned, aging Aunt Clara’s skills in witchcraft leave something to be desired.

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Esmeralda (Alice Ghostley) – Esmeralda is the housekeeper/nanny. Like Aunt Clara, Esmerelda is well-intentioned but has a few problems where her magic is concerned.

Dr. Bombay (Bernard Fox) – Dr. Bombay is the womanizing warlock who is called upon whenever a supernatural illness occurs. Known for making bad jokes, he is usually accompanied by a curvaceous assistant. He is summoned by calling out, “Dr. Bombay, calling Dr. Bombay. Emergency, come right away!”

Tabitha and Adam Stephens (Erin and Diane Murphy, David and Greg Lawrence) – Tabitha and Adam are the son and daughter of Darrin and Samantha. Both eventually end up with supernatural powers. Tabitha’s were evident when she put her finger on her nose and moved it back and forth in an imitation of her mother, who would twitch her nose when casting a spell. Adam, much to Darren’s dismay, was taught how to be a warlock by his grandmother, Endora.

Trivia

Elizabeth Montgomery (Samantha Stephens) was married four times. Her last husband was Robert Foxworth, who played Chase Gioberti in Falcon Crest. After the three previous attempts Elizabeth was apparently wary of taking the plunge: they lived together for nineteen years before finally walking down the aisle in 1993.

Agnes Moorehead was rumored to be a lesbian, despite two marriages. Moorehead eventually confirmed her sexuality in an interview while at the same time naming several other actresses who “enjoyed lesbian or bi relationships”.

One of the show’s biggest controversies came when Dick Sargent took over the role of Darrin Stephens from Dick York. York had been playing Darrin since the show began in 1964, but by 1969 it had become clear that a deteriorating back injury and addiction to pain killers meant that he would be unable to continue. William Asher, a producer/director on the show (as well as Montgomery’s husband) thought that it should simply be cancelled, not least since he and Elizabeth Montgomery were keen to move on to new things. The network, however, felt that the ratings were high enough for the show to continue, so Dick Sargent was hired to take the place of York.

Dick Sargent (Darrin Stephens) came out as gay on National Coming Out Day in 1991, just a few years before he died of prostate cancer in 1994.

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Erin Murphy (Tabitha Stephens) has six children, all boys, and has been married three times.

Bewitched was “re-imagined” as a 2005 movie of the same name starring Nicole Kidman and Will Ferrell. The New York Times called it “an unmitigated disaster”.

Agnes Moorehead (Endora) was a cast member of the movie The Conqueror, which is considered by some to be the cause of several actors’ deaths. The movie was filmed in 1954 in the Nevada desert, near where the government was carrying out nuclear tests. In total, more than 90 of the 220 cast and crew members developed cancer, and at least 46 people died from it including John Wayne, Susan Hayward, Dick Powell and Pedro Armendariz. Moorehead herself died of uterine cancer in 1974.

Elizabeth Montgomery died of colorectal cancer in 1995, aged 62, only eight weeks after being diagnosed.

In addition to suffering from severe back pain and an addiction to prescription painkillers, Dick York (Darrin Stephens) was also having blackouts on set. After one show, he collapsed and was rushed to hospital, never returning to the series. After leaving the show, he had to lie flat on his back for a year.

Although the Darrin switch caused a stir, it could hardly be blamed on Dick Sargent. Sargent had successfully auditioned for the role of Darrin Stephens when the show was first set to go on air in 1964, even before Elizabeth Montgomery was chosen as Samantha. He had to turn it down as he was under contract at the time to Universal Studios, who wanted him for another series called Broadside.

Elizabeth Montgomery turned down the role of Krystle Carrington on the television series Dynasty.

Agnes Moorehead co-hosted the Academy Awards with Dick Powell in 1948, the first ever woman to co-host the awards.

The switching of actors playing Darrin gave birth to a new phrase, the “Darrin Syndrome” or “The Other Darrin”. A perfect example of this was when the character of Becky was switched on the popular show Roseanne. Lecy Goranson was switched for Sarah Chalke. The change in actress was the topic of many references on the show, including one episode where the family is watching Bewitched and Sarah Chalke (the second Becky) says she likes the second Darrin better.

Although he never married, Dick Sargent was with his partner for twenty years before losing him to a cerebral hemorrhage in 1979. In earlier years, he had made up a non-existent wife in order to protect his career from the damage that would have resulted from being open about his sexuality.

David White was a United States Marine and served in World War II.

The characters of Tabitha and Adam were written into the show to cover two pregnancies of Elizabeth Montgomery. She had a son during her “Tabitha” pregnancy and a daughter during the “Adam” one. Her first pregnancy wasn’t written into the show and was disguised by voluminous clothing and carefully chosen camera angles.

Erin Murphy retired from acting after Bewitched ended. She has been in a large number of television commercials, including one with former actor and President of the United States, Ronald Reagan.

Agnes Moorehead starred in films alongside many well-known actors and actresses. Her film debut was as Orson Welles’ mother in the movie Citizen Kane.

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Dick York first injured his back while filming They Came to Cordura in 1959. He and fellow actor Gary Cooper, along with several other men, were propelling a hand car down a railroad track when he accidentally lifted the device, tearing the muscles on the right side of his back.

After Elizabeth Montgomery’s original five-year contract was up, she made the decision to move on to other projects. The network, however, was so desperate to keep her on the show, that they gave her part ownership as a part of her new contract.

In one episode Larry and Louise Tate are seen in their kitchen, which is the same set used for the kitchen of Tony Nelson in I Dream of Jeannie. The Bewitched house can be seen just down the street from Tony Nelson’s house in many of the outdoor shots, and its interior and exterior also doubled as the house of Nelson’s fellow NASA co-worker, Doctor Bellows.

Dick Sargent’s grandfather, John McNaughton, was the founder of Los Angeles’s Union Stockyards.

Agnes Moorehead acted in films and on radio as well as on television.

Elizabeth Montgomery came in at #52 in FHM’s list of “100 Sexiest Women”.

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The house used for Bewitched is still standing today on the Warner Bros. Ranch lot in Burbank, California at Hollywood Way. The house still looks much like it did when the series ended production and can often be seen in commercials, television series and even movies.

The exterior of what was known in Bewitched as the Kravitz house was also used for both The Partridge Family and The Donna Reed Show.

Dick York’s autobiography is called The Seesaw Girl and Me.

Agnes Moorehead accepted the role of Endora after a chance meeting in a Bloomingdale’s department store with Elizabeth Montgomery and William Asher. She had previously turned down the role but after seeing Montgomery and Asher changed her mind.

Elizabeth Montgomery and Lizzie Borden were actually sixth cousins once removed. Montgomery played the role of Borden in the TV movie The Legend of Lizzie Borden in 1975. The genealogist who documented the connection between the two mused, “I wonder how Elizabeth would have felt if she knew she was playing her own cousin”.

The series revived the popularity of the name Samantha. In Puratanical times it had fallen into disuse as a result of its associations with witchcraft. Since the show began, the name Samantha has remained consistently popular and in 2009 it was the 15th most popular girls’ name.

David White was in the film Brewster’s Millions with Richard Pryor.

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Nearly all of the female witches on the show had names that ended with an “a”.

Dick Sargent and Elizabeth Montgomery were co-Grand Marshalls of the Los Angeles Gay Pride Parade in 1992. It was their final appearance together.

The rehearsals for the pilot show of Bewitched were set to begin on November 22, 1963, but were postponed because of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, who was a good friend of William Asher.

Despite the antagonism between their characters, Dick York and Agnes Moorehead grew quite close while filming Bewitched.

Erin Murphy often speaks about autism as one of her children has the disease.

Famed actresses Helen Hunt and Jodie Foster were both considered for the role of Tabitha.

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Despite increasingly bad ratings Bewitched had been renewed for a ninth season, but Elizabeth Montgomery had fallen in love with director Richard Michaels. After the eighth season was over they moved in together and ended both their marriages, making a ninth season impossible.

Bewitched was the #2 show in America during its very first season.

Elizabeth Montgomery was a strong supporter of gay and women’s rights. She was also a vocal critic of the Vietnam War as well as a narrator for a series of political documentaries.

David White died from a heart attack in 1990.

When Agnes Moorehead died she left her family’s Ohio estate, Moorehead Manor, to Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina. According to her will, she wanted the university to use the property for retreats. However, due to the distance from South Carolina, it was virtually useless to them and in 1976 they traded it to an Ohio college in return for a collection of library books and $25,000.